Prophecy is the Testimony of Jesus (Rev.19:10)

– Matt. 5:14-21 – “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven. “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’

–  Matt. 23:29-32 – “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous. And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. Go ahead, then, and complete what your ancestors started!

In the last days prophets will be ‘killed’ by religious leaders. Many religious leaders of today are against the gifts of the spirit which includes being against the gift of prophecy.

– Rev. 19:10 – the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

Testimony:
1. evidence or proof provided by the existence or appearance of something

Prophecy is the proof of Jesus; the evidence of Christ’s existence. Prophecy allows us to see Jesus. We prophecy in part, and see Him in part, but when He returns He will fulfill all prophecy so that we can see Him in full.

– Matt. 46-48 – He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. 49I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”

Even though the disciples had been trained under Jesus, and witnessed everything, they were still not fit to spread the good news! ‘Testimony’ was never supposed to mean words spoken from man. ‘Testimony’ is supposed to be the display of the proof and power of God through the Holy Spirit. ‘Testimony’ is supposed to be the Spirit working in power, because the Spirit is Jesus and Jesus rose from the dead; He’s alive today! Every gift and power that Jesus had, the Spirit has. Jesus is still healing, setting people free, casting out demons, confronting false religious leaders, and moving with power on the earth.

You might say, ‘Well, I’ve never seen the gifts at work.’ Well, I have! Have you seen Jesus? Do you still believe God’s word is true? You believe in Jesus, right? We are called to believe the entirety of the word of God. Faith is the evidence of things not yet seen, and without faith it is impossible to please God. We can believe they exist by faith in God’s word, then we can ask Him to show us. God loves us and respects our decisions, so He will never force something on us that we do not want; that is He why He says to eagerly desire the gifts of the Spirit. Eagerly desire the gifts and you will see the face of God.

– 1 Cor. 2:4-5 – my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.

Eph. 6:10-11 – Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.

Before Moses died, God gave him a song for the Israelites. God knew the Israelites would turn away from Him once Moses died. God said the song would be the witness against them (Deut.31:21)… Before Jesus left, He gave us a prayer, which would have been sung in those days and still is sung in some denominations today. In this prayer He set the example for us to pray, ‘Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth’. Is this going to be a witness against our generation? Kingdoms are taken with force, and a spiritual kingdom is taken with spiritual force:

– 1 Cor. 4:20 – For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power

Prophecy, and all the spiritual gifts, will be around until the work of Jesus is complete:

– 1 Cor. 13:8-12 – But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears… For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

Prophecy is still active today, because the work of Jesus, in us, is not complete yet. Jesus did not come to abolish the prophets or prophecy (Matt.5:17). We need prophesy to see and understand God until we can see Him face to face.

– Phil. 3:12 – I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me.

– Acts 2:17 – In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.

In the last days, there will be prophets. We are in the last days guys!

– Rev. 18:23-24 – The light of a lamp will never shine in you (Babylon) again. The voice of bridegroom and bride will never be heard in you again. Your merchants were the world’s important people. By your magic spell all the nations were led astray. In her was found the blood of prophets and of God’s holy people, of all who have been slaughtered on the earth.”

Revelations talks about the last days, and it says prophets will be ‘killed’ by unbelievers. That means there are supposed to be prophets today. Take heart, because Christ has overcome the world (John16:33), and those who are persecuted for Christ inherit the kingdom of God (Matt.5:10)!

– Rev. 1:1-3 – The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.

A revelation is a revealing of truth. The revelation we received from Jesus is the Holy Spirit, who is the Spirit of truth as we’ll see in the next passage. Jesus himself said that He had more things to say, and that the Spirit was going to be the one to guide us into it. We saw earlier that the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophecy. We also understand that prophecy is the Word of God, because John calls this verse itself a prophecy and we know that all scripture is God-breathed. God was, is, and is to come. When God speaks His words are timeless too, that is why His words are called prophesies. Prophesy can thus be described as: proclaiming a timeless truth about God. And since His words are without time, they can play out many times in many ways, always holding truth. If this is the case, the life of Christ can be both physical and also play out again in the spiritual realm. I think we are in the middle of repeating Christ’s life. We need the Spirit to teach us how that works. Prophecy is not a new word from God, or adding to the bible, it’s simply a new revelation about who God is, and how the timeless truth pertains to our now.

Example: Christ was born of a virgin. He was wholly man, and wholly God. It was by the Spirit that Mary conceived.

Now, we are the body of Christ. We, the body, were born when the Spirit of God joined to those who had repented and become pure (like a virgin). When the Spirit fell on them, He made man His dwelling place, making us wholly man and wholly God. We are now born children of God as Christ was. We, the church, will grow for a time until we come into full knowledge of God, and like Christ, be launched into the final years of ministry leading us to the end times where we will be martrys, or in Jesus case, death on the cross. We repeat Christ’s life. There is no new word spoken, it’s only a new revelation of how the timeless word operates in our current time.

– John 16:12-13 – I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.

– John 14:26 – But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I (Jesus) have said to you.

All scripture is God-breathed. That means, all scripture is the Spirit of God. How then can we understand it without the Spirit? Every person who wrote the Bible did so by the power of the Spirit. The Spirit is for every person, to give us the power to fulfill the destiny God has planned for us. The Spirit teaches us, reinforces and reminds us of God’s words. Every person who accepts Jesus receives the Spirit of Jesus, but if they deny the power of Him, they will never be able to walk in their divine purpose.

– 1 Cor. 12 – Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant… no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit… But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills… But now indeed there are many members, yet one body. And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.”… there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another.  And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually. And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues.

Prophecy builds up the body of Christ. Destroy one part of the body and other parts will not function properly. We must have prophesy within the body of Christ to become the spotless bride that he returns for.

– 1 Cor. 14:1,3,31,39 – Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy… But the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort… For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be encouraged… Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak with tongues.

– Matt. 21:21-22 – Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

Matt. 7:7-11 – “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

It is God’s will for you to prophesy and work in the power of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. It is God’s will for you to walk on the earth in the same power, authority, and Spirit that Christ did. Ask Him to show you and give you the gifts of the Spirit today.

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– Eze. 6:1-2 – The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, set your face against the mountains; prophesy against them

Prayer: Spirit, where you are at work, increase and cause accelerated growth. Raise up the bones of the valley, and cause breath to enter into them. Raise up people, filled with the breath and Spirit of God. It is by your breath that all things came into being. Praise you for putting this power in earthen jars! Cause your people to speak the words they hear from you, for you surely do not release anything into the earth without first telling your people the prophets. Raise them up – exponential growth and reproduction of your children. Release your dunamis words to create, change, and destroy in the earth; to bring down every teaching in the church that sets itself against you and every authority in the earth that would destroy your people. Spirit, breath of God, enter into the people who you have created in your image. Those baptized in the name of the father, the son, AND the holy spirit; not by water but by your Spirit and with power! The baptism of God, not that of man. The cleansing with the washing of your word, not of water. Clean us up God! Help us see you in full with the spirit of prophesy – the proof of Christ! I prophecy to the mountain of religion, the leaven of the Pharisees, be removed in the name of Jesus Christ! Lord, bring people into relationship with you, and bring up the gift of prophecy to help us discern your voice and your will for our lives and the lives of those around us. Cause us to speak life into these broken ones that you love and care for so deeply. 

– Eph. 5:9,14,18 – For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true… “Awake, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will give you light”… be filled with the Holy Spirit

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Women in the Church – Part 1

This is the most powerful teaching I’ve ever heard, much less tried to regurgitate. No doubt it will stretch some believers, and maybe scare or offend some, but I couldn’t recommend another study, to anyone, over this one. There are some denominations that think its okay for women to speak and there are some that don’t think it’s okay for women to speak. Sadly, the only side I’ve ever heard speak on the topic, are the churches that would stifle women. Even after growing up around women who were speaking, and leading at the age of 13, I had some verses in the back of my mind that I couldn’t help but wonder about. I’m sure most women have them in the back of their head too. Let’s bring it to the front and see what the Bible really says about women’s roles in the church.

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First, let’s talk about the woman’s curse and some language barriers in the New Testament:

Gen. 3:16 – Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.

This verse doesn’t say men are to rule over women, but that husband would rule over the wife (and even that was not God’s will, but the natural punishment of our trespassing boundaries).

In the Hebrew language there are separate words for man, woman, wife, and husband. In the Greek language there are not separate words for man/husband, or woman/wife. Let’s look at a couple scriptures in the new testament where having separate words could change the way we read them:

1 Cor. 11:3 – But I want you to realize that the head of every man (husband?) is Christ, and the head of the woman (wife?) is man.

If we read this verse with the translation man and woman, then we now have more of a curse on us than we did in the Old Testament curse. If we read this verse using the translation husband and wife, instead of adding a heavier curse on women, the verse is simply repeating the old testament verse – that the husband will rule over the wife.

Gal. 3:13 – Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law.

Q: If Christ redeemed us, then is the husband still ruling over the wife? No.

Eph. 5:24-25 – … wives should submit to their husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her

Eph. 5:33 – each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

1 Cor. 7:4 – … the husband does not have authority over his own body but yields it to his wife.

A: Culturally men used to own women, as they would a house, but now Paul invites a culture where women have ownership of their husbands too. Now it is an equal thing. Paul used to be, Saul, a Pharisee. If a Pharisee had heard Paul give women this authority, they would’ve had a stroke. See, between the last book of the Old Testament, and the first book of the New Testament, was 400 years. During that time we see the rise of the religion termed Judaism, with Pharisees and Sadducees. These terms weren’t mentioned in the Old Testament under the Mosaic Law. If fact there were only 252 laws given under Moses. Yet, in Judaism there were 613 laws, 100 of which were written against women. Pharisees hated women. Jewish women at the time were kin to slaves with no rights. They received no respect, and had no voice. They were the property of men. They could not own land. They were not allowed a formal education. They were required to veil their face in public, and if they didn’t, there was grounds for divorce. If there was a male visitor to the house, the woman would have to eat in another room. They were subject to arranged marriages, and sometimes polygamy. Women couldn’t vote or even be a witness in a court trial (more on this in the next section). They weren’t allowed to read the Torah. One teacher during that time even said: ‘I would rather burn the Torah than have a woman read it.’ They couldn’t even pray at meals.

So, having a former Pharisee say something like, ‘the husband does not have authority over his own body but yields it to his wife’, would have been amazingly controversial. As we know, Jesus often had the same effect when He was teaching. So, should it surprise us that His disciples are still fighting against these added laws, and denominations, which hold no truth?

Back to the ruling vs. equality thing – Women now are asked to submit and respect their husbands, and husbands to give themselves up for their wives. Husbands no longer rule, or force, their wives, but instead become equal servants. This is the reverse of the curse. If you are a woman and don’t honor God’s word, to respect and submit to your husband, then the natural response of your husband might end up being: that he gets angry, there is a lot of discord in the home because there are dueling authorities, and eventually these footholds may turn into a stronghold, and he might start beating you; which is not God’s will. Husbands should love their wives. Remember the love chapter? Love is not self-seeking. Remember how Jesus died for the church? Men should not rule over their wives, but love and give themselves over to the woman. This way there is equality.

Of course some countries are still living under the curse because there is only freedom from the curse where the Spirit of the Lord is. All those who love God have His Spirit and that Spirit guides them into Truth if they will follow.

2 Cor. 3:17 – where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

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Tidbit:

Luke 8:1-3 – Soon afterward Jesus began a tour of the nearby towns and villages, preaching and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom of God. He took his twelve disciples with him, along with some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases. Among them were Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons; Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s business manager; Susanna; and many others who were contributing from their own resources to support Jesus and his disciples.

Jesus didn’t follow the cultural tendency to keep women in ignorance. He had women following him, just like the disciples, getting their education.

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Let’s look at this one verse through this next segment:

1 Cor. 14:34-35 – Women (wives?) should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. 35If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman (wife?) to speak in the church.

Q: Is this verse saying women should be silent in church and submit to men, or that wives should not speak out of turn to their husbands, or what?
A: Well, that’s a multi part answer. We’ll cover it in 4 points:

1. First, if Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, and the original curse was submission to husbands, why would we now be submitted to all men? Wasn’t the point of redemption, from the law, to make the curse less intense instead of strengthening the curse? Let’s look further:

2. The context of this segment of 1 Corinthians 14 is talking about order in church service, not about women’s rights. Other verses in the same chapter empower women:

1 Cor. 14:34-35 – Women (wives?) should remain silent in the churches

1 Cor. 14:39 – my brothers and sisters, be eager to prophesy.

1 Cor. 14:5 – I would like every one of you to speak in tongues, but I would rather have you prophesy.

1 Cor. 14:26 – What then shall we say, brothers and sisters? When you come together, each of you has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation.

Why would God ask women to be eager to prophesy if they weren’t supposed to use the gift to speak in church, where 1 Cor. 14:4 says, ‘the one who prophesies edifies the church’? How can a woman edify the church if she can’t speak in church? Seems like our ideas are not God’s ideas. God says its okay for women to speak in church; I say I’m following Him. I want the whole truth, not a pet scripture out of context, that cuts off half the body.

Since this verse says, in fact, that women are allowed to speak in the church, then what is the other verse for again?

1 Cor. 14:34-35 – Women (wives?) should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. 35If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.

1 Cor. 14:29-33 – Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others judge. 30 But if anything is revealed to another who sits by, let the first keep silent. 31 For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be encouraged. 32 And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. 33 For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.

This verse says, women shouldn’t interrupt a service with questions, or speak at an inappropriate time that causes confusion. The one who speaks over someone else is not being loving, whether they are a man or a woman. If anyone has a question they should ask after the appointed time of listening. So why were women singled out?

3. The old testament says this to both men and women:

Eccl. 5:1-2 (HCSB) – Guard your steps when you go to the house of God… Do not be hasty to speak.

Eccl. 5:1 (NIV) – when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen.

Sounds like no one should be interrupting service. So why were the women singled out again?

4. Paul wrote his letters to specific locations, churches, and even people in those churches. The few restrictive verses on women that he gave were all specific messages to Greek cities that had a goddess as the head of the city.

Corinth worshipped Aphrodite
Ephesus worshipped Artemis
Crete worshipped Kynthia

Let’s get to know this Greek culture so we can understand the context of the verse and future ones:
– The Greeks loved women and gave them more authority than men. Their reason being, mens sex drives are stronger and women decide what they do with their own bodies, holding the power over the man.
– The most honored people in these 3 greek cities were women priestess, at the temple of the goddess of the city. Meaning the converted christian men in these cities would be used to having women speak at religious events, and the converted christian women would be used to speaking at them. Women already talk too much. Can you imagine how much more they would talk while being enabled to speak over a man? I can’t imagine that an empowered Grecian woman would be much different than an American one – can’t get a word in edgewise. Maybe if the men had been faced with such an urgency to talk, that they disrupted service, they would’ve been singled out too.
– Greek women were also allowed to have an education; so these newly converted men didn’t know any more than the women did. It wasn’t like the pharisees who knew more scripture because they suppressed their women and kept them from having an education. What good would it have been to go home and ask a husband of equal knowledge? So when it says women can’t speak, it must be talking about the timing and disruptive nature of the speaking. Let’s face it, the few denominations that hold this verse over their women, still let them speak in church; just not preach. They are adding context to the verse too. Otherwise they would be silent when they enter, and wouldn’t sing.
– Paul also told these cities it was better to not marry, so there were plenty of singles who couldn’t go home to ask questions later anyway. They would’ve had to ask during a part of the church service that was designated for questions. Americans typically do this after service.
– And finally, and maybe most importantly, in these early churches, men and women sat on opposite sides of the room. For a woman to ask a question, in church, to her husband, meant she would have to scream across the room to him, interrupting the ordered time of listening. Disruptive much?! No wonder they were singled out to be quiet.

I think bullet 2 speaks the loudest, seeing the context of the chapter, but hopefully you’re catching the drift here. It’s okay for women to speak in church. Paul was addressing a very specific instance, in a very specific location, about being disruptive.

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Next, let’s talk about women in the bible that dared to speak in church.

Instance #1

John 12:3-4, 7-8 – 3Then Mary took a pound of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair… Judas Iscariot… objected, 5“Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor?… 7Jesus replied. “It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. 8You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”

‘Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said’ (Luke 10:39), had a clear understanding that Christ would die, and she was leading the pack with that knowledge. The 12 disciples hadn’t gotten the picture; Peter even got rebuked for denying that Christ would die. They not only didn’t get it sometimes, but they didn’t do anything to serve or prepare Jesus for it. A great leader is a servant, which puts Mary leading the pack in service and understanding. We see that Jesus is fighting on her side, and the men are against Mary’s leadership; not just Judas, but all the disciples.

Matt. 26:8 – When the disciples saw this, they were indignant.

Luke 7:39-43 – When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.” 40Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.” “Tell me, teacher,”…  44Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”

Once again we see a man opposing this leading woman, even calling her actions sinful, and Christ rebukes him. The funny thing is, this one was a Pharisee who obviously lived by the added laws we talked about earlier. The disciples, however, were not learned men. They had been brainwashed by their culture, even while trying to follow Christ.

Instance #2

Did you notice in the previous instance that Mary had one pound of perfume for Christ’s burial? One pound was the typical amount needed for a Jewish burial. Nicodemus brought and used 100 pounds of this expensive embalming material; that was enough for use in a hundred or more common Jewish burials.

John 19:38‑40 (NKJV) – Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus… Nicodemus, the man who had come to Jesus at night, came too, bringing a hundred pounds of embalming ointment made from myrrh and aloes. Together they wrapped Jesus’ body in a long linen cloth saturated with the spices, as is the Jewish custom of burial.

Matt. 28:1 – After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.

The Marys went to LOOK at the tomb. Could it be that Mary, the one who sat at Jesus feet, was again the only one who got Jesus? The only one who understood that He would rise again, and the only one with enough faith to go early in the morning to look at the tomb to see if He had risen? The men weren’t there.

When she got there, she noticed the rock had been moved and Jesus wasn’t in the tomb. She rushed to tell the men. But of the 11 disciples that were left, only two went to the tomb. Remember earlier when we mentioned that women were not allowed as a witness in court? It might be important to note that Mary was told to go tell the disciples. She had divine authority to be the first witness of the risen Christ. Were the men too self-righteous in their worldly traditions to see what God was doing? Were they so unwilling to hear a woman that they missed the Resurrection of Jesus?

John 20:6-9 – Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. 8Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9(They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)

The two men left, but Mary stayed and waited on the Lords presence and was richly rewarded.

Mark 16:9 – When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene

Mark 16:1 – When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus‘ body.

Why was Mary carrying more spices when she went to look at the tomb? Did she really intend to add to the 100 pounds of oil that were already on Christs body in the tomb? How did she expect to get in this tomb? It had a giant boulder and guards blocking it. Remember how Mary had anointed Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair in instance 1? Mary was the only one who not only understood that Christ was about to die, but also prepared him for it. I don’t think she came to the tomb looking to rewrap Christs body with linens she didn’t bring, or add more oils to the 100 pounds. I think she came looking because she also understood He was going to rise. And she wanted to be there to prepare and anoint the risen King of Israel. There were no men looking or waiting for Him, but Mary was once again with Jesus, anointing His head with oil, and wiping his feet with her hair and tears of joy.

Matt. 28:5-9 – The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him.

Isn’t this the good news? That Jesus has conquered death and the grave, and risen into His Kingship? Funny how the first carriers, witnesses, proclaimers, preachers of the good news were women bent on seeing the face of Christ and expecting Him to fulfill His promises.

Mark 16:9‑11 – Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons. 10 She went and told those who had been with Him, as they mourned and wept. 11 And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe.

We found out where the men were after all. Mourning and weeping! They didn’t understand His promise and, if they did, they didn’t have faith when they heard the good news. They certainly weren’t going to listen to the preaching of a woman. Their loss then; their loss now.

Luke 24:10‑11 – It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them, who told these things to the apostles. 11 And their words seemed to them like idle tales, and they did not believe them.

Seems to me like Jesus is okay with women teaching men. Seems to me that he orchestrated that whole thing to show us something. Not just to show us that women can teach men, but to warn men to heed the teaching.

Eph. 4:1-7,11-16 – Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, 2with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, 3being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all. 7But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift… 11And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, 12for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; 13This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ. 14As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; 15but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, 16from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.

Jesus is calling forth the women. He has been calling since the beginning, and He still is.

We, the body of Christ, cannot reach maturity until we have built the body up in love. The love of God, which is not boasting/exalting of men, proud of men, or dishonoring to women. We, the body, cannot reach maturity until we become unified in this kind of love. Right now, the body has been cut in half. Only half are operating in the the 5-fold ministry to serve and build up the church. We’ve allowed our culture, and our willingness to follow manmade rules and doctrine instead of Christ, to lead us into a lack of knowledge of who Christ really is. Satan is scared stiff of Eve. He knows that when she comes to the realization of what he has taken from her – hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.

If we want Jesus to return for us, we have to become the mature, intact, loving body, and bride of Christ that He has called us to be. The men who disagreed, and dishonored what God had honored, missed the first Resurrection. Men, are you missing out on something from God because your ways aren’t lined up with God’s ways? Women, I ask that you start searching out the full measure of Christ, and step into your God given place in the works of service Christ has called you to. The body needs our help, our love, our knowledge, our gifts, and our callings. Women carried the very first gospel message, and whether people listen or not, we aren’t going to stop proclaiming, “He is Risen!”

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Last tidbit for today, then we’ll finish this discussion in Part 2.

Directly after Christ was announced the Son of God, Satan began to tempt him. Satan will continue to tempt us in the same ways.

Matt. 4:5-10 – Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6“If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written: “ ‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’ ”7Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ” 8Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9“All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” 10Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’ ”

John 8:44 – the devil… was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

Through this verse we know that Satan is the father of lies, and there is NO truth in him. So how can there be no truth in him if he knows and recites, the truth, the word of God, to Jesus?

Satan has taken the scripture out of context and stripped it of its truth and power. He will tempt us all, the same way he tempted Jesus: 1.with what we need/want, 2.with taking all the glory for our God given calling/doing things in the wrong timing/doing things that don’t line up with scripture, 3.with scripture. We have to know Jesus, the Word of God, better than Satan. We have to know it and keep it intact! When Satan brings up a verse, we need to search out the rest of the Bible and make sure it aligns with the big picture! We need to make sure it aligns to Christ and His truth, and that it isn’t an unaligned lie from Satan. Teachers are good, but we can’t let any teacher, or denomination, become our golden calf that we hold up, and worshipped, above Jesus. Sometimes, there are leaders that have quit looking for Christ’s full measure, and have settled on worldly ways. We need to remember that we are all works in progress, and we are all tempted; even our leaders and forefathers.

Ex.32:2-4 – Aaron said to them, “Take the objects of gold from the ears of your wives, your sons and your daughters, and bring them to me.” 3 So all the people took the gold objects from their ears and brought them to Aaron. 4 He took the gold from their hands, worked on it with a sharp tool, and by melting it, made it into a calf. Then they said, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.”

Aaron led the people of Israel. He stripped the women of their adornments and said, ‘this is the God you follow.’ Are you on your guard to see if your leader is causing you to worship false gods? Women, are you allowing your leader to strip you of the gold adornments God has given you when He led you out of your powerless slavery? Do you see God as the God who frees the oppressed and gives them power, or are you allowing someone to make you worship a god that is powerless and makes you powerless?  You judge for yourself what sounds like the full gospel of Christ and what sounds like a scripture that’s been idolized to deceive.

Ex. 15:19-21 – When Pharaoh’s horses, chariots and horsemen went into the sea, the Lord brought the waters of the sea back over them, but the Israelites walked through the sea on dry ground. 20Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her, with timbrels and dancing. 21Miriam sang to them: “Sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted. Both horse and driver he has hurled into the sea.”

Ex. 15:1 – Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord: “I will sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted. Both horse and driver he has hurled into the sea.

A woman, in the Old Testament, working in the 5-fold ministry as a prophet, sang a new song to God, and led the nation of Israel in worship.

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If you want to know more you can: 
1. Listen to the podcasts in the below links:
http://podcasts.ibethel.org/en/podcasts/the-theology-of-empowering-women-part-1

http://podcasts.ibethel.org/en/podcasts/the-theology-of-empowering-women-part-2

2. Get this book: Fashioned to Reign by Kris Valloton
3. Or wait for Part 2 of this blog post

About 80% of this post came from the podcast